Blessed Are You Who Believe

April 10, 2012

This Second Sunday of Easter is known as Divine Mercy Sunday. Blessed Pope John-Paul II established the feast in 2000 when he canonized St. Faustina of Krakow. The Church and the world receives from the Risen Christ the gift of Divine Mercy. This is the message of the Resurrection.

The parish had a glorious Holy Week. The liturgies were very well attended, Paul J. Musarra was fully initiated at the Great Vigil, and now the parish anticipates the Sacrament of Confirmation for our young adults. Easter is a season of grace!

Today’s Gospel would seem, at first glance, to paint the Apostle Thomas in a rather negative light. He was absent on Easter night. Unfortunately, he received the nickname, “Doubting Thomas.” When he sees the Risen Christ one week later, that is today, he makes the greatest personal attestation of faith in the Gospels, “My Lord, and My God.” Jesus words to him are then applied to us, “Blessed are those who have not seen, but believe.”

Speaking about seeing. You may have noticed the pile of field stones on the Church lawn. My first inclination was to say they are for my public stoning! They for a retaining wall to prevent the soil from its annual erosion near the house. One of our only two advertisers on the back page of the parish bulletin, Andre Soares, is constructing the wall. The elevated space will then be planted with blue hydrangeas that will face the Garden of Our Lady. The flowers will be used to decorate the Church during the summer months. The masonry work will be completed very soon.

Finally as mentioned above, keep our Confirmation Candidates in your prayers as they prepare to receive the Spirit. As they face a challenging world, our prayer is that their Catholic faith will guide them to make right decisions in their Christian lives.